Beefcake is often used to denote male sexual attractiveness stemming from physical build, but is also used by women and men interested in bodybuilding and weight training, while others consider unnaturally overdeveloped musculature unattractive. While in spectator combat disciplines many fighters choose to make their entry (or even fight if no uniform is prescribed) in elaborate costumes that sometimes practically hide them, others simply display their natural physique. In a species that reproduces sexually, sexual attraction is an attraction to other members of the same species for sexual or erotic activity. ... Professional Bodybuilder Gustavo Badell posing Bodybuilding is the process of maximizing muscle hypertrophy through the combination of weight training, sufficient caloric intake, and rest. ... This article is about strength training using weight (gravity) to generate resistance to contraction. ...

Actors known as Beefcakes

Beefcake poses by male actors were used far less frequently than cheesecake layouts of actresses, nevertheless as early as the 1920s photographs were taken of such stars as Rudolph Valentino and Ramon Novarro to highlight their physical appeal. Male physique shots of famous stars were even less frequent during the early talking picture era outside of stars of jungle films like Johnny Weissmuller (Tarzan) and Buster Crabbe. The 1940s saw a rise in shirtless shots of such handsome stars as Tyrone Power, Guy Madison, Sterling Hayden and Victor Mature; and in the 1950's movie magazines began running swimsuit shots of actors such as Tony Curtis, Rock Hudson, Tab Hunter, Jeff Chandler, Robert Conrad and Robert Wagner almost as frequently as they would of actresses. Also during this period came the rise of bodybuilding magazines, which continue to be popular to the present day, as well as musclemen movie stars like Steve Reeves who were often barely dressed in their action/adventure films. Marilyn Monroe, one of the most iconic and famous female sex symbols of all time. ... Rudolph Valentino (May 6, 1895 – August 23, 1926) was an Italian actor. ... Ramón Novarro (February 6, 1899 – October 30, 1968) was a Mexican actor who achieved fame as a Latin lover in silent films. ... Johnny Weissmuller (June 2, 1904 – January 20, 1984) was an American swimmer and actor who was one of the worlds best swimmers in the 1920s, winning five Olympic gold medals and one bronze medal. ... Buster Crabbe Buster Crabbe (February 7, 1908 – April 23, 1983) was an American athlete turned actor, who starred in a number of popular serials in the 1930s and 1940s. ... Tyrone Edmund Power, Jr. ... Guy Madison Guy Madison (January 19, 1922 - February 6, 1996) was an American film and television actor. ... Sterling Hayden (March 26, 1916 - May 23, 1986) was an American actor. ... Victor Mature (29 January 1913 – 4 August 1999), an American film actor, was born in Louisville, Kentucky to a Tyrolean father, Marcellus George Mature, a cutler, and a Swiss-American mother, Clara Mature. ... For other persons named Tony Curtis, see Tony Curtis (disambiguation). ... The tone or style of this article or section may not be appropriate for Wikipedia. ... Hunter (left) with actor John Bromfield Arthur Andrew Kelm (born July 11, 1931, in New York City, New York) is an American actor and singer, and goes by the pseudonym Tab Hunter. ... Jeff Chandler can refer to different people: Jeff Chandler: a cinema actor Jeff Chandler: a boxer This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share the same title. ... Robert Conrad Robert Conrad (born either Conrad Robert Falk or Konrad Robert Falkowski on March 1 in Chicago, although the year is still subject to question), is an American film and TV actor and director. ... For other persons named Robert Wagner, see Robert Wagner (disambiguation). ... Stephen L. Reeves (January 21, 1926 – May 5, 2000), was a bodybuilder, actor, and author. ...

1970 to present

The 1970s proved a golden age for beefcake with the debut of Playgirl magazine and its completely nude pictorials of men, Cosmopolitan magazine's famous semi-nude centerfolds of actors like Burt Reynolds, and the rise of pornography directed at gay male audiences in both magazines and films. Today, it is about as common to see beefcake shots of male sex symbols like actors Brad Pitt and Tom Cruise on the cover of general interest magazines as temptress poses of female sex symbols. While for many actors and models shirtless poses are the least demure in line with their 'conservative' image, for others it looks almost prudish compared to the more revealing, sometimes even pornographic work. Playgirl is a monthly lifestyle magazine published in the United States that features seminude or fully nude men. ... June 1936 issue Cosmopolitan is a magazine for women, sometimes referred to as Cosmo, which has been published for more than a century. ... Burt Reynolds (born Burton Reynolds Jr. ... Marilyn Monroe, one of the most iconic and famous female sex symbols of all time. ... William Bradley Brad Pitt(born December 18, 1963) is an American actor and film producer. ... Tom Cruise (born Thomas Cruise Mapother IV on July 3, 1962) is an Academy Award-nominated, Golden Globe Award-winning American actor and film producer. ...

The Carlson Twins modeled for many, including very prestigious photographers and magazines, sometimes in notoriously erotic and/or nude poses.

Other actors who have occasionally posed for beefcake shots over the years include Errol Flynn, Robert Taylor,John Payne, Jeffrey Hunter, Rory Calhoun, Peter Lupus,Rod Taylor, Joe Dallesandro, Sam J. Jones, Tom Selleck, Mark Harmon, former Calvin Klein underwear model Antonio Sabato Jr and Victor Webster. Image File history File links Carlsons. ... Image File history File links Carlsons. ... The tone or style of this article or section may not be appropriate for Wikipedia. ... Eroticism is an aesthetic focused on sexual desire, especially the feelings of anticipation of sexual activity. ... Depictions of nudity refers to nudity in all the artistic disciplines including vernacular and historical depictions. ... Errol Leslie Thomson Flynn (June 20, 1909 – October 14, 1959) was an Australian film actor, most famous for his romantic swashbuckler roles in Hollywood films and his flamboyant lifestyle. ... Robert Taylor (August 5, 1911 – June 8, 1969), was an American actor. ... Payne in Kansas City Confidental John Payne was an American movie actor who is mainly remembered as a singer in 20th Century Fox film musicals. ... Jeffrey Hunter Jeffrey Hunter (November 25, 1926 - May 27, 1969) was a film and television actor. ... Rory Calhoun (born Francis Timothy McCown Durgin on August 8, 1922 – April 28, 1999) was born in Los Angeles, California. ... Peter Lupus as Willy Armitage in Mission:Impossible Peter Lupus is an American bodybuilder and actor, born in Indianapolis, Indiana on June 17, 1932. ... Rod Taylor (born January 11, 1930) is an actor. ... Andy Warhol presents: Joe Dallesandro in Paul Morrisseys Flesh 1968 Joseph Angelo (Joe) Dallesandro (born December 31, 1948 in Pensacola, Florida) is an Italian American actor known for his voluptuous physical beauty, on-screen nudity and openly stated bisexuality. ... Autographed picture of Sam J. Jones as Flash Gordon Sam J. Jones (born August 12, 1954 in Chicago, Illinois) is an American actor, often credited as Sam Jones. ... Thomas William Selleck (born January 29, 1945 in Detroit, Michigan) is a Golden Globe and Emmy Award winning American actor, screenwriter and film producer, best known for his starring role on the long-running television show Magnum P.I.. He is recognizable by his 6 ft 4 (193 cm) height... For the musician of the same name, see Mark Harmon (musician). ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... Antonio Sabato, Jr Antonio Sabato Jr. ... Victor Webster is a Canadian actor born on February 7, 1973 in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. ...

In advertisement, beefcake male models have become a popular ingredient for 'spicy' commercial shots and (often humorous) spots, e.g. the British future minor pop star Nick Kamen remains most famous for his 1985 beefcake performance in Levi's "Launderette" TV commercial where he strips down in order to stone-wash his blue jeans in a 1950s style public laundromat while he waits clad only in his boxer shorts, which dramatically increased their popularity; it was selected for "The 100 Greatest TV Ads" in 2000 and followed by many other, often bare-chested, sometimes even naked. Generally speaking, advertising is the paid promotion of goods, services, companies and ideas by an identified sponsor. ... The cover of a Victorias Secret catalog, a catalog known for featuring supermodels as its lingerie models. ... Nick Kamen (born April 15, 1962) is a model and singer from Essex, England, most famous for his 1980s Levis commercials where he strips to wash in a public laundromat (showing him in boxer shorts, dramatically increasing their popularity. ...

Many professional male bodybuilders advertise their services, offering advice concerning nutrition, training etc., often marketing their videos in which training programmes are demonstrated. Since the late 20th century, it has become more evident that buyers of such videos are attracted not just by a bodybuilder's mere bulk of muscles, but also by his toned body and sexual appeal. Browsing through a number of bodybuilders' home pages, one occasionally finds videos advertised which are said to include "frontal nudity", "sexually explicit material", etc. Bodybuilder showing highly developed muscle tone. ...

A 1998 movie of the same name Beefcake details the history of the Athletic Model Guild, an early company known for their photos of men in various publications. Beefcake (1999) is a docu-drama homage to the muscle magazines of the 1940s-1960s, in particular the Physique Pictorial Magazine published by Bob Mizer of the Athletic Model Guild. ... The Athletic Model Guild was an old organization founded by gay pioneer Bob Mizer in the mid-1940s. ...

Sources and references

(incomplete)

• Dictionary.com
• Thesaurus.com
• IMDb references

See also

• Beefcake (film)
• Beefcake magazines
• Beefcake the Mighty
• Brutus Beefcake
• Sex in advertising
• Weight Gain 4000, a South Park episode